An oldie but goodie: Mendocino oak largest in country

[XemaSab]

After 500 years or more, the monumental valley oak in Round Valley has grown into the largest specimen of its kind in the United States.

The Henley tree's base is so big it would take 20 people standing shoulder to shoulder to encircle it.

"It's a magnificent oak specimen," said Steve Sillett, a Humboldt State University tree expert.

Sillett leads a university research team that takes official measurements of the biggest trees around the globe, including the tallest - a towering redwood in Humboldt State Redwood Park.

http://www1.pressdemocrat.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060310/NEWS/603100305/1033/NEWS01

(And full disclosure: Steve Sillett is an ass, and I'm sorry he's quoted in this article.)

[NNadir]

1. Beautiful tree. Your disclosure though is intriguing.

I know we've talked in the past about the status of California oaks.

What's the latest?

[XemaSab]

3. All I know is SOD is still going...

I was tempted earlier to go put the sudden oak death on some little seedlings in the back yard. The jays LOVE to cache acorns in the yard, and while having about 20 oaks back there would be fun, I need room for my California sycamore that I got yesterday. And my elderberries... ;)

/boring personal information unrelated to the question you asked

[bbinacan]

2. Why is Sillett an ass?

I've never heard of him.

[XemaSab]

4. He's difficult to get along with

:(

[losthills]

5. Must be an environmentalist.....

[XemaSab]

11. If flunking half your intro to botany class makes you an environmentalist, then yeah

I don't like him because he's an environmentalist.

Couple that with spending a month on bryophytes and two weeks on flowering plants, PLUS making intro students memorize a 100+ feature cladogram for the final, and yeah, he's going to put Al Gore out of business real soon. :P

Oh, and it looks like I'm not the only one with this opinion:

http://www.ratemyprofessors.com/ShowRatings.jsp?tid=604720

[kestrel91316]

6. Read Richard Preston's profile of him in his book "The Wild Trees",

and make up your own mind. People who are "difficult to get along with" are not necessarily bad people.

[mike_c]

7. "...a Humboldt State University tree expert."

:rofl:

[XemaSab]

8. .

:thumbsup:

[eppur_se_muova]

9. He has an interesting Web site ...

http://www.humboldt.edu/~sillett/sillett.html

The links on the right of the page offer "tours" of the canopies of Sequoia, redwoods, eucalyptus, Douglas fir, & Sitka spruce.

[losthills]

10. Now that's cool!